Relationship between the structure of arteries veins and capillaries

Blood Vessels | The Franklin Institute

There are three kinds of blood vessels: arteries, veins, and capillaries. Arteries carry oxygenated blood away from the heart. Unlike arteries, veins contain valves that ensure blood flows in only one direction. Figure – Structure of Blood Vessels: (a) Arteries and (b) veins share the same general . Exchange of gases and other substances occurs in the capillaries between the blood . Career Connection – Vascular Surgeons and Technicians. Blood Vessel Structure and Function: How the Circulatory Network Helps to Fuel the The journey might begin and end with the heart, but the blood vessels reach every The Three Major Types of Blood Vessels: Arteries, Veins, and Capillaries Use the links at the bottom of any email to manage the type of emails you.

Every time the organism moves physically, blood is squeezed between skeletal muscles and forced along the vein.

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Any attempt at backflow and the semi-lunar valves shut tightly! Capillary network Every living cell needs to be close to a capillary. The arteries transport blood from the heart but before entry into the capillaries it needs to pass through smaller vessels called arterioles. Many arterioles contain a ring of muscle known as a pre-capillary sphincter. When this is contracted the constriction shuts off blood flow to the capillaries, but when it is dilated, blood passes through.

Some capillary networks have a shunt vessel. When the sphincter is constricted blood is diverted along the shunt vessel so the capillary network is by-passed. After the capillary network has permeated an organ the capillaries link into a venule which joins a vein.

Although the pressure of the blood in the capillaries is lower than in the arteries or arterioles, there is still enough pressure to force out some of the liquid part of the blood. The liquid part of the blood is called plasma and when it is forced out of the capillaries it is called tissue fluid.

What is the difference between an artery and a vein?

Shared Structures

Explain the relationship between the structure and function of arteries, capillaries and veins.

This tissue fluid bathes the cells, supplying them with nutrients and taking up waste products. At the venous end of the capillary bed, most of this tissue fluid is reabsorbed back into the capillaries. When the arteriole is dilated vasodilation more heat can be lost from the skin. When the arteriole is constricted vasoconstriction the blood cannot enter the capillary network so is diverted to the core of the body.

Less heat is lost from the skin. Lymphatic system There is a network of vessels other than the blood system. They are the lymphatic vessels. Separating the tunica media from the outer tunica externa in larger arteries is the external elastic membrane also called the external elastic laminawhich also appears wavy in slides.

This structure is not usually seen in smaller arteries, nor is it seen in veins. Tunica Externa The outer tunic, the tunica externa also called the tunica adventitiais a substantial sheath of connective tissue composed primarily of collagenous fibers.

Some bands of elastic fibers are found here as well. The tunica externa in veins also contains groups of smooth muscle fibers.

This is normally the thickest tunic in veins and may be thicker than the tunica media in some larger arteries. The outer layers of the tunica externa are not distinct but rather blend with the surrounding connective tissue outside the vessel, helping to hold the vessel in relative position. If you are able to palpate some of the superficial veins on your upper limbs and try to move them, you will find that the tunica externa prevents this.

If the tunica externa did not hold the vessel in place, any movement would likely result in disruption of blood flow. Arteries An artery is a blood vessel that conducts blood away from the heart. All arteries have relatively thick walls that can withstand the high pressure of blood ejected from the heart.

However, those close to the heart have the thickest walls, containing a high percentage of elastic fibers in all three of their tunics. This type of artery is known as an elastic artery Figure Vessels larger than 10 mm in diameter, such as the aorta, pulmonary trunk, common carotid, common iliac and subclavian arteries are typically elastic.

Their abundant elastic fibers allow them to expand, as blood pumped from the ventricles passes through them, and then to recoil after the surge has passed. If artery walls were rigid and unable to expand and recoil, their resistance to blood flow would greatly increase and blood pressure would rise to even higher levels, which would in turn require the heart to pump harder to increase the volume of blood expelled by each pump the stroke volume and maintain adequate pressure and flow.

Artery walls would have to become even thicker in response to this increased pressure. The elastic recoil of the vascular wall helps to maintain the pressure gradient that drives the blood through the arterial system. Between beats, when the heart is relaxed, diastolic pressure is provided by this elastic recoil. An elastic artery is also known as a conducting artery, because the large diameter of the lumen enables it to accept a large volume of blood from the heart and conduct it to smaller branches.

Comparison of the walls of an elastic artery, a muscular artery, and an arteriole is shown.

Arteries, Veins, and Capillaries

In terms of scale, the diameter of an arteriole is measured in micrometers compared to millimeters for elastic and muscular arteries. The artery at this point is described as a muscular artery also called a distributing artery because the relatively thick tunica media allows precise control of blood vessel diameter to control blood flow to different areas or organs.

The diameter of muscular arteries typically ranges from 0. Their thick tunica media allows muscular arteries to play a leading role in vasoconstriction. In contrast, their decreased quantity of elastic fibers limits their ability to expand. Fortunately, because the blood pressure has eased by the time it reaches these more distant vessels, elasticity has become less important.

Rather, there is a gradual transition as the vascular tree repeatedly branches. In turn, muscular arteries branch to distribute blood to the vast network of arterioles.

Arterioles An arteriole is a very small artery that leads to a capillary. Larger arterioles have the same three tunics as the larger vessels, but the thickness of each is greatly diminished. The critical endothelial lining of the tunica intima is intact. The tunica media is restricted to one or two smooth muscle cell layers in thickness.

Know The Differences- 5. Artery, Vein and Capillary

The tunica externa remains but is very thin see Figure The smallest arterioles do not have a tunica external and the tunica media is limited to a single incomplete layer of smooth cells.

With a lumen averaging 30 micrometers or less in diameter, arterioles are critical in slowing down—or resisting—blood flow and, thus, causing a substantial drop in blood pressure. Because of this, you may see them referred to as resistance vessels. The muscle fibers in arterioles are normally slightly contracted, causing arterioles to maintain a consistent muscle tone—in this case referred to as vascular tone—in a similar manner to the muscular tone of skeletal muscle.

In reality, all blood vessels exhibit vascular tone due to the partial contraction of smooth muscle. The importance of the arterioles is that they will be the primary site of both resistance and regulation of blood pressure. The precise diameter of the lumen of an arteriole at any given moment is determined by neural and chemical controls, and vasoconstriction and vasodilation in the arterioles are the primary mechanisms for distribution of blood flow due to local metabolic demands.

Capillaries A capillary is a microscopic channel that supplies blood to the tissues themselves, a process called perfusion. Exchange of gases and other substances occurs in the capillaries between the blood and the surrounding cells and their tissue fluid interstitial fluid.

The diameter of a capillary lumen ranges from 5—10 micrometers; the smallest are just barely wide enough for an erythrocyte to squeeze through. Flow through capillaries is often described as microcirculation. The wall of a capillary consists of the endothelial layer surrounded by a basement membrane with occasional smooth muscle fibers. There is some variation in wall structure: In a large capillary, several endothelial cells bordering each other may line the lumen; in a small capillary, there may be only a single cell layer that wraps around to contact itself.

For capillaries to function, their walls must be leaky, allowing substances to pass through. Continuous Capillaries The most common type of capillary, the continuous capillary, is found in almost all vascularized tissues.

Continuous capillaries are characterized by a complete endothelial lining with tight junctions between endothelial cells. Although a tight junction is usually impermeable and only allows for the passage of water and ions, they are often incomplete in capillaries, leaving intercellular clefts that allow for exchange of water and other very small molecules between the blood plasma and the interstitial fluid.

Substances that can pass between cells include metabolic products, such as glucose, water, and small hydrophobic molecules like gases and hormones, as well as various leukocytes.

Continuous capillaries not associated with the brain are rich in transport vesicles, contributing to either endocytosis or exocytosis. Those in the brain are part of the blood-brain barrier. Here, there are tight junctions and no intercellular clefts, plus a thick basement membrane and astrocyte extensions called end feet; these structures combine to prevent the unregulated movement of nearly all substances. The three major types of capillaries: These make the capillary permeable to larger molecules.

The number of fenestrations and their degree of permeability vary, however, according to their location. Fenestrated capillaries are common in the small intestine, which is the primary site of nutrient absorption, as well as in the kidneys, which filter the blood. They are also found in the choroid plexus of the brain and many endocrine structures, including the hypothalamus, pituitary, pineal, and thyroid glands.

Sinusoid Capillaries A sinusoid capillary or sinusoid is the least common type of capillary. Sinusoid capillaries are flattened, and they have extensive intercellular gaps and incomplete basement membranes, in addition to intercellular clefts and fenestrations. This gives them an appearance not unlike Swiss cheese. These very large openings allow for the passage of the largest molecules, including plasma proteins and even cells.

Blood flow through sinusoids is very slow, allowing more time for exchange of gases, nutrients, and wastes.